February 25, 2025 UPDATE
A roundup of local and world news
Newsroom, 25.02.2025, 20:08
WB Representatives of Romania’s Environment Ministry on Tuesday met World Bank officials for talks that focused on increasing the capability of creating and improving the programmes aimed at monitoring the quality of air at national level, ways of preventing wildfires and solutions regarding Romania’s vulnerability to drought and flooding. “Romania is on an ambitious course of sustainability and environmental reforms need solid investment and strong partnerships”, Environment Minister Mircea Fechet says, according to a communiqué released by the institution. Talks also focused on finding the most effective mechanisms of funding and implementing green projects be they about curbing CO2 emissions, waste management, reforestation, the protection of biodiversity or the transition towards circular economy. “We need innovative and sustainable solutions and the WB expertise provides valuable support in this sense” – the minister went on to say.
TALKS Romania’s interim President, Ilie Bolojan, will be holding talks with all parliamentary parties on Wednesday to prepare Romania’s position at the special European Council meeting on March 6. The main topics of discussion are related to support for Ukraine and the preparation of the European Union’s common defense strategy, after the American administration announced that it wants to reduce its military presence in Europe. Each of the seven parties represented in Parliament and the parliamentary group of national minorities has been allocated an hour for discussions. In a message conveyed on Tuesday, Ilie Bolojan says that a series of decisions will be made at the upcoming summit, which is going to have a direct effect on Romania. “Against this complicated and dynamic background, when we are witnessing a series of changes at international level, it would be necessary for us to adjust our foreign policy to be able to handle these challenges. However there are things that aren’t going to change, namely Romania’s national interests, a safe and prosperous country, a trustworthy country at peace with its neighbours. We are a safe country because we are benefitting from solid defence guarantees” Ilie Bolojan said.
MOTION A censure motion against the PSD-PNL-UDMR coalition government in Bucharest was submitted to Parliament on Tuesday. The document was signed by 154 parliamentarians from what is known as ‘the sovereignist bloc’ made up of SOS Romania, AUR and POT. However USR, also in opposition, has announced that it does not back the motion, as there are not enough votes to endorse it and that the process should have been initiated after the presidential elections in May. The signatories are accusing the Executive of illegitimacy, corruption and incompetence in managing the economy and European funds. PSD, PNL and UDMR believe the initiative will not be successful. The motion will be debated and voted upon on Friday.
SALES The Romanian carmaker Dacia’s sales in Europe registered an annual decline of 5.2% in January, and the car manufacturer’s market share fell to 4.9% from 5.1%, data released on Tuesday by the Association of European Automobile Manufacturers say. The statistical data is valid for the European Union, the United Kingdom and the countries of the European Free Trade Association, namely Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Large car manufacturers reported mixed sale developments in January: increases of 5.4% at Renault and 16.6% at Volkswagen, but a decrease of 12.2% at Ford. The European Commission is hosting talks between car manufacturers, suppliers and unions in the field, with a view to implementing plans at EU level to protect the automotive sector, vital for the prosperity of the community bloc. In recent weeks, European carmakers have announced plant closures and layoffs, amid competition from rivals in China and the prospect of additional tariffs from the US. The European car sector employs 13.2 million people and accounts for 10.3% of all jobs in the EU industry.
RATE After ten months in which Romania had the highest average annual inflation in the EU, in January 2025 Hungary climbed to first position, with 5.7%, followed by Romania, with 5.3%, and Croatia, with 5 percent, according to data published by the European Statistical Office. At the opposite end, last month, the lowest average annual inflation rates in the EU were recorded in Denmark (1.4%), Ireland, Italy and Finland (1.7%). Compared to December 2024, Eurostat shows that the average annual inflation rate decreased in eight EU member states, including Romania, from 5.5% to 5.3%, remained stable in four and increased in 15 countries. The National Bank has revised upwards the inflation forecast in Romania for the end of 2025, from 3.5% to 3.8%. The Governor of the National Bank of Romania, Mugur Isărescu, anticipates that this indicator will reach 3.1% at the end of 2026.
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